The Mess We've Made
by ellaatthedisco
Summary: A missing scene from 2.03 "Broken Dolls". After her run in with Mathis, Felicity gets a visitor.


Five hours ago, if you had asked Felicity where she kept her corkscrew in her kitchen, she could have given you a detailed answer and a handrawn map to go along with it. Now, she couldn't even remember which cabinet held the plates. The adrenaline was keeping her from falling asleep, but it wasn't doing her brain any favors. Her mind was too preoccupied for the simplest of tasks but she continued to dig through her drawers regardless.

She was about three seconds from giving up completely when she turned towards the fridge and remembered that her corkscrew was magnetic. Sighing, she snatched the offending kitchen tool off the door and set to work on getting the freshly bought bottle of wine open.

She was surprised John had let her drive herself home after her little excursion out into the field playing bait for a serial killer. You know, she might be a genius but she sure came up with some pretty stupid ideas. Although, once she'd gotten home and realized she didn't remember the drive at all, she wondered if that had been a very good idea on John's part.

The cork finally gave and the smell of the red wine filled her up and she momentarily forgot all about serial killers and arrows and head wounds. And then she heard him clear his throat behind her.

"You do know that I have a front door, right?" She asked not bothering to turn around as she reached for a wine glass from the hanging rack. "Or is scaling the fire escape just more appealing?" Oliver sighs but doesn't answer. When he does say something, Felicity jumps a little at his sudden proximity.

"You know, if you have a concussion, you shouldn't drink alcohol." Felicity turns and finds him right in front of her. If she reached out, she could easily wrap her arms around him. Instead, she rolls her eyes at him.

"Do you really think Digg would've let me come home by myself if he thought I had a concussion?" She asks and, for emphasis, takes a long swig from the glass in her hand. She catches the small tug at the corners of Oliver's lips as he tries not to smile.

"Fair enough," he nods, "but are you at least going to offer some to your guest?" She doesn't miss the playful tone or the twinkle in his eye and her stomach flips a little.

"That depends entirely on who my guest is," she shrugs, waving her hand slightly and causing the red liquid to slosh against the sides of the glass. "Because, you know, masked vigilantes scale fire escapes. Billionare CEO bosses knock on the front door." She looks up and catches the smirk on his face as he considers this.

"Which one gets me a glass of wine?" Felicity chuckles and waves her free hand dismissively, turning back to pour another glass.

"Either one," she tells him, "I'd just like to know whether I'm talking to Oliver 'grr-I'll-arrow-you-very-non-leathely' Queen or Oliver 'Mr. Queen' Queen." He chuckles and she turns to hand him a glass as he shakes his head.

"Are you sure you don't have a concussion?" He teases, taking the offered drink. She raises an eyebrow at him.

"You know what I mean." His smirk falls and Felicity immediately regrets ruining the joke. She spends so much time with angsty Oliver and teasing Oliver is so.. She pushes away all the descriptive words she knows she shouldn't be thinking in the first place as his eyes meet hers.

"Okay, how about somewhere in the middle? Who's that?" He asks and he sounds so sincere her hand falters around her glass momentarily and it almost slips from her fingers. He doesn't seem to notice, though, his eyes searching her face for something she's not sure she can tell him.

"I'm still trying to figure out," she murmurs in response to his question and he seems satisfied with that answer as the corners of his mouth turn up slightly again.

"Let me know when you do." She gives him a grin as he takes a drink of his wine before stepping around him to get to the living room.

"So, you've checked up on me. I'm alive, I'm not breaking down in tears. Are you satisfied?" She perches herself on the arm of her couch and looks up at Oliver, still standing in the threshold between the kitchen and the living room. He's staring at her the way she's seen him look at coding she's left up on the computer in the foundry. Like she's a whole new language that he can't quite seem to get the hang of. Her brow furrows and she tilts her head.

"What?" He doesn't move forward and the distance is making her feel like she's missed something big.

"I shouldn't have let you go out there tonight," he says, his voice deepening until it feels more Arrow than Oliver and her throat tightens up at the sound of it. "It was stupid. I should've said no, I should've-"

"Should have what, Oliver?" She asks gently, standing up and placing her wine glass on the coffee table. "Tied me to the chair until you'd caught the guy? You're stubborn, Oliver, you don't take no for an answer and that fierce refusal to do so has saved a lot of lives since I met you. But you aren't the only one who isn't very good at no. Do you really think, if you'd said no, I would have listened? Or do you think I would have pushed and prodded until I got my way?" He doesn't respond but finds great interest in the door frame. Felicity sighs and takes a few steps towards him until she's close enough to lay her hand on his arm.

"I know you're used to punishing yourself for things you can't control, but not everything bad that happens is your fault." He chuckles and his eyes meet hers again, she tilts her head at him in question. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," he shakes his head and she finds herself delighted at the smile there, "it's just Digg said the same thing to me about him and Carly."

"Ah," Felicity nods, letting her arm fall as she steps back. "Smart man, that Digg." She gives him a smile and turns back to the couch, picking up her wine and dropping down into the cushions this time.

"So, what now?" She asks pulling her legs up under her. "Are you going to stay for another drink and some Jimmy Fallon or what?" He smirks at her but shakes his head.

"I have the pretrial hearing in the morning," he says and Felicity dips her head slightly ashamed that in the excitement of the night she had momentarily forgotten about Oliver's home field troubles. "I won't be into work until the afternoon." Felicity nods her head as she feels them slipping back into Oliver the boss territory.

"Okay, well, I'll keep up the search tonight and I'll give you a call in the morning if I find anything," she tells him already plotting out her search plans for her computer in her head. Oliver nods and moves toward the back of the room where the fire escape meets the brick of her building.

"Oliver," she calls and he stops to look at her. She raises an eyebrow and points toward her front door.

"Like a civilized human being this time."


End file.
